Louisiana's Section 303(d) List

Louisiana's 1999 Court Ordered

Section 303(d) List

View the 1999 Court Ordered 303(d) List

(link to 303(d) PDF file to be added to Website)

Louisiana's current Section 303(d) * list was released on October 28, 1999 by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 6 in Dallas, Texas. EPA developed this list as a result of a Court Order issued against EPA Region 6 on October 1, 1999. Under the order, EPA Region 6 disapproved Louisiana's 1998 303(d) list (1998/305b-ctab.htm), which they had previously approved on September 14, 1998, and created the new 1999 Court Ordered 303(d) List (link to 303(d) PDF file to be added to Website). Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) are to be established based on priorities determined by the Court as part of the Court Ordered 303(d) list. This Court Ordered EPA 303(d) list supercedes the 1998 303(d) list created by the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ).

EPA was ordered to rely on four documents in creating the Court Ordered 303(d) list:

1) the 304(l) list, a list of waters impaired by toxics originally reported in the 1990 305(b) report;

2) the 1993 Nonpoint Source Pollution Assessment Plan, a report based entirely on water quality assessments done for the 1992 305(b) report;

3) the 1996 303(d) list (305b-e.htm) which is based on the 1996 305(b) report (1996); and

4) the 1998 305(b) report (1998) .

The Court Ordered schedule for TMDL development is as follows.

Louisiana Water Quality Management Basins

Year for TMDL completion (December 31 of each year)

Mermentau and Vermilion-Teche

1999

Calcasieu and Ouachita

2001

Barataria and Terrebonne

2003

Red and Sabine

2005

Pontchartrain

2006

Mississippi Atchafalaya and Pearl

2007

Both LDEQ and EPA are working to develop TMDLs for water bodies on the 303(d) list. LDEQ and EPA are also working to update the Court Ordered list based on new data obtained for the 2000 305(b) (2000) reporting period. New data obtained after development of the 2000 305(b) report will also be considered when determining the current status of waterbodies on the 303(d) list.

* References such as 303(d), 305(b) and 304(l) refer to sections of the Federal Clean Water Act.